Already shaping up to be a great two days, the show is a must-attend for anyone looking to make their farm business more efficient, productive, and ultimately more profitable.

With a carefully curated roster of talks, from a diverse range of speakers, we’re offering a platform to industry professionals, whose experience lays at the forefront of innovation in British agriculture.

Wed 24^th November, LG Plant Breeding Hub Speaker Programme

Join us on Wednesday 24^th November at 10.20-10.55am to hear Limagrain UK’s Pulse Breeder, Will Pillinger talk about the latest developments in pulse breeding. He will explain how increasing pulse crop yields through plant breeding can potentially improve output and reduce risk on-farm.

At 12.00-12.25pm, Dr Emma Wallington of NIAB, will discuss what gene editing is and how this could be adopted in the UK.

Liam Wilkinson, Arable Technical Specialist at Limagrain UK concludes the Day 1 programme at 1.20-1.55pm with a presentation on trait focused oilseed breeding and how this forms the basis of IPM strategy when managing the crop.

Thurs 25^th November, LG Plant Breeding Hub Speaker Programme

On Thursday 25^th November, we open our Day 2 programme at 10.20-10.55am with Farmacy Agronomist Charles Wright, who will be sharing his first-hand experience of the impact of varietal resistance on agronomic decision-making in a farm environment.

At 12.00-12.25pm, we will benefit from a farmers’ perspective with Jonny Hodgson, who will talk about the importance of plant breeding in a regenerative agricultural system.

We end the speaker programme for the day at 1.20-1.55pm with Limagrain UK Cereals Pathologist, Rachel Goddard. Rachel will go into detail on breeding diverse disease resistance in wheat and discuss what wheat breeders can do to stay one step ahead of pathogen evolution.

To view the full Seminar Programme for the Plant Breeding Hub click here.

Farm-led advice and a warm welcome

We aim to showcase the latest innovations in UK plant breeding at the LG Plant Breeding Hub. We are also keen to talk with growers about the challenges currently facing the industry, from climate change to price pressures. Our experts will be on hand throughout the day with farm ready advice and a wealth of both practical knowledge and technical insight.

It’s been 2 long years since the last Croptec event, and if the free resources are not enough to tempt you, we have tea and coffee on LG stand, PLUS a scratch card giveaway with a host of great prizes.

Get your FREE tickets today

If you’ve not already registered for free tickets, please put the dates in your diary and click here to do it now. We look forward to seeing you on the LG Plant Breeding Hub stand.

Scratchcard competition

On Friday 5^th November, politics and plant breeding came together as Jo Churchill – MP for Bury St Edmunds, who is also Parliamentary Under Secretary of State and Minister for Agri-Innovation and Climate Adaptation within DEFRA, visited Limagrain UK’s wheat breeding centre at Woolpit, Suffolk.

Jo Churchill, watering wheat plants in the vernalization chamber

Limagrain is a fast growing farmer owned international co-operative group, specialising in both agricultural and horticultural seeds, and in cereal products. As the fourth largest breeder and seeds marketing company in the world, it employs 9,000 people with a turnover of more than 1.98 billion euros annually.

During the visit, Mrs Churchill received a presentation from Jonathan Tann, Limagrain Business Area Director for NW Europe, on the company from an International and UK perspective, followed by a tour of the research and development facility by Ed Flatman, Limagrain’s Head of European Wheat Research, along with Phillip Tailby, Limagrain UK’s Senior Wheat Breeder.

One of the most important issues currently facing plant breeders are the pressures and rules regarding the importing and exporting of seed. Mrs Churchill was aware of the latest situation and appreciated that there were still problems to resolve.

Current hot issues surrounding plant breeding, such as gene editing and agri-food innovation, were also discussed along with the challenge of energising young people to engage with the opportunities within agriculture.

Mrs Churchill was joined by Oli Wilson, DEFRA, and Lesley Canham, Constituency Office Manager.

From left – Ed Flatman, Phil Tailby, Oli Wilson, Jo Churchill and Jonathan Tann

A dry autumn and limited grass growth, coupled with high bought-in feed prices, are making dairy producers consider how best they can increase output from their forage-growing area. Limagrain UK’s John Spence suggests throwing the net a bit wider and looking at some high-feed-value spring-sown crops.

“These include kale rape hybrids, new bounce-back brassicas, and fodder beet,” he says, adding they can all provide a high-feed-value crop and give the grass rotation a valuable break.

“The starting point, when it comes to crop planning in spring, is deciding which grass swards need attention, as on most dairy farms this is the staple crop.”

A good first cut of grass silage, taken in the first two weeks of May from a high yielding conservation ley, should yield six tonnes of dry matter per hectare.

Limagrain published data from grass-seed-mixture trials across four consecutive years, from 2017 to 2020, which showed at least this level of yield in commercially available conservation mixtures. But, regardless of mixture, yield and quality declined year-on-year.

“Overall we recorded a reduction in yield of five tonnes of dry matter per hectare from the peak in year one to year four, representing a 40% drop,” says Mr Spence. “Five tonnes of dry matter would provide the energy to produce £3,280-worth of milk, based on a milk price of 30ppl.

“Estimated reseeding costs are between £430 and £700 per hectare, so it offers a clear return on investment. So putting up with poor grass is a false economy.”

A spring or summer sown forage crop can be a useful circuit breaker between grass crops for grassland pests, particularly in the light of the pesticide ban on grassland.

And these fast-growing, high-yielding forages, such as a forage brassica crop, for grazing in mid to late summer when grass gets short, are appealing on many farms.”

Hybrid brassicas and forage rape are sown from May until July. They grow fast and are typically ready to graze in between 12 and 14 weeks.

“These crops have deep roots, so they’re ideal if it’s dry – the sort of conditions we’re seeing more often. And they’re typically grazed in situ, so nutrients and organic matter are returned to the land which boosts soil fertility.”

Feed value is good too, particularly if high-value varieties are used. In Limagrain field trials, where a wide range of commercially available, rape/kale hybrids were compared, with the highest relative dry matter crops, Unicorn and Interval, yielding 11% and 17%respectively,above the control, and offering top scores for mildew resistance too.

Kale crops can also be sown across a few months too, and they u provide an additional forage crop into autumn and winter. Like all brassicas, it has a high protein content, but it will outyield the hybrids. Kale is a relatively economical to grow.

Another good spring-sown crop, which can withstand drought and provide a summer forage supplement for dairy cattle, is the unique bounce-back brassica Skyfall. “Already very successful in sheep systems, it is gaining momentum for dairy and beef systems,” says Mr Spence

Like rape kale hybrids, it’s got a wide sowing window from May to July and is ready to graze within 12 weeks. “It has large strap leaves, which look like stubble turnip leaves, and roots that are deep and elongated – more like a forage rape root – which promotes the crop’s regrowth and drought tolerance.

“After grazing, the crop is then closed up for four weeks to enable the re-growth before grazing again. We’ve seen three grazing rounds from each crop, with earlier sown crops showing the most bounce-back potential.”

At the end of summer, once these crops are grazed off, the land can be ploughed, and a grass or winter cereal crop sown. Or the land can be left for reseeding until the following spring to ensure a break in the pest cycle.

Power-house
Fodder beet is another spring-sown crop with very high feed value. Alongside maize, it is energy rich and provides a palatable ‘powerhouse’ in dairy rations.

While Mr Spence suggests light to medium free-draining soils are most suited to growing fodder beet, it will thrive on a wide range of soil types. “It’s a crop that that is well suited to the UK climate. It will produce consistent yields in wet or dry conditions, so our drier summers are not too much of a threat to this crop,” he says.

For the past five years Limagrain has been exporting fodder beet seed to New Zealand for grazing dairy cattle – both milkers and young stock. “It’s taken off among their milk producers, who graze the crop in situ. They use the same varieties as we grow here and, as in the UK, the maritime climate suits the crop.

“But consider the land type first for out wintering grazing systems. Heavy, wet land can make moving fences daily, or every few days, hard work. But where it will work, producers can place fresh silage bales at the end of rows and create a sort of ‘in situ’ TMR and we see cattle thrive on this diet.”

Areas where beet lifting equipment is available lend themselves to using the crop in TMR systems. It can be lifted and clamped and used through winter.

Varieties with medium dry matters, with 60% of the root out of the ground are best suited to dairy systems, either for using in the TMR or for grazing. Popular varieties in dairy systems are Robbos or Blaze.

“There are some very good options for spring sown forages,” adds Mr Spence. “I would encourage some research and looking at the suitability of each crop for the own farm and system, and also to be discerning in the choice of variety for each crop.

“There’s been significant progress in feed value between varieties and some modern choices boast much better feed values, which will be welcome news for many producers looking to maintain or improve cost of milk production.”

• After another strong year, spring bean LG Raptor moves from its P2 rating to fully join the PGRO DL offering high yields, excellent vigour and agronomics
• A second spring bean, LG Viper also fully joins the DL from Limagrain, offering a class-leading disease package
• Blue pea LG Aviator also moves from a P2 to full recommendation with a world-class disease resistance package and standing power

Spring Beans
Yield performance – that is yield and consistency – is the most important factor for spring beans and is a major focus in the Limagrain breeding programme and this can be seen in our spring bean additions to the DL this year,” notes Will Pillinger, pulse breeder at Limagrain UK.-

“LG Raptor offers extremely high yield potential at 102% of control, and importantly has shown a consistency in these yields over the last few years, which is a really important and valuable attribute for a spring bean,” he says.

“But high yields need to be backed up by solid agronomics and traits – and LG Raptor offers all of this – it is fairly early to mature, stands well and offers a good disease package including rust.”

“LG Raptor is suitable for human consumption, fish feed and animal protein markets so offers a range of marketing opportunities.”

Tom Barker, pulses product manager for Limagrain, says.” LG Raptor’s consistent yields and disease resistance package mean it will be taking a big bite into the spring bean acreage – particularly in the north with its particular combination of traits.”

“LG Viper is our second spring bean to fully join the DL and a really exciting spring bean variety that offers a class leading disease package backed up by Limagrain’s comprehensive, extensive and reliable dataset,” says Mr Pillinger.

“Looking in particular at rust resistance; LG Viper’s rating of 7 is stand-out when compared to other varieties in the sector and really worth taking note of. The variety also has a good downey mildew rating of 6.”

“Standing is a really important attribute for on-farm management of spring beans, LG Viper has the highest standing power rating on the DL of 9.”

“Yield-wise the variety sits well up in the top of the pack at 102% of control.”

Mr Barker adds to the breeder’s comments, pointing out that the variety is suitable for the human, fish and animal protein markets offering a high thousand grain weight (633 (g)n (@15%mc) and an excellent protein content (% dry).

Peas

Large blue pea LG Aviator also moves from a P2 rating to a full recommendation with a yield of 100%.

Will Pillinger explains that the reason for these high yields is because LG Aviator is a multi-podded variety type. “For each node that LG Aviator produces, there are three pods, this means there are more pods at the top of the plant rather than spread through the plant, making for a more even maturity with less competition for light – and this is a significant characteristic in building yield.”

He points out that with this stunning and predictable plant habit, this new type of manageable green pea variety makes planning pesticide and nutrient applications far easier than conventional ‘semi-indeterminate’ types. This also applies for predicting the harvest period- which is really useful.

Agronomically there is much to like about the variety he adds. “LG Aviator offers one of the best resistances to downey mildew (8) and is highly resistant to powdery mildew. It’s early, and has good ratings for standing ability and straw length (rated 7) – making it one of the best agronomic packages of any other provisionally rated varieties.”

“Suitable for both human consumption and for animal protein, all of this makes for a very exciting variety and one that should perform well for UK growers. End users have already shown a significant interest in LG Aviator.”

LG Pulse Breeding aims for 2022 and beyond

• Producing consistently reliable varieties for variable seasons
• Increasing resistance to viruses
• Increasing pest tolerance
• Continued focus on breeding for root rot (Aphanomyces) tolerance
• Continued selection for high protein content in peas

Delayed or late drilling of winter wheat, considered to be from mid-October onwards, is now common practice on farms today particularly for black-grass management, in a second wheat situation and for those who are drilling wheat after sugar beet or potatoes.

However, late drilling presents a unique set of challenges to the crop points out Limagrain UK’s arable technical manager Ron Granger.

“Soils will inevitably become cooler and wetter as winter draws in so it is important to proceed with care and consideration in order to get the crop well established.”

“It is important to make a distinction by choosing varieties that will cope well rather than be challenged by the situation,” he says.

“Get it wrong, and you could be facing fairly substantial yield penalties, yet this is totally avoidable.”

“Characteristics of wheats that suit this slot are strong tillering and vigorous, combined with good rooting attributes and a semi prostrate growth habit in the winter.”

He adds that as a consequence, crops drilled later will not have been in the ground as long as those drilled earlier in the autumn, so the chosen variety needs to be quick off the blocks in the spring, once growing conditions are favourable.

“This is especially important where there is black-grass as you need a variety that will compete with its rapid growth rather than sit and tiller flat to the ground, eventually becoming smothered by it.”

“The theory is not complicated, he notes. “This is why LG Skyscraper suits the blackgrass situation over a variety like LG Sundance which is high tillering with a late plant development in the spring.”

Limagrain has conducted a range of trials over the years looking at which varieties suit the later-drilled slot – which includes both winter and spring wheat varieties sown in the later drilling situation after the end of October.

“LG Skyscraper was by far the most consistent performer in this position, delivering high yield potential continuously over very differing climatic seasons.”

Data from several seasons of work also suggests that taller wheats, such as LG Skyscraper, are at an advantage in the later drilling scenario because larger plant canopies also play an important role in keeping black-grass ear numbers and seed return to the minimum, says Mr Granger.

He also points out that one of the single most important factors in getting a late drilled crop off to a good start is to use the correct seed rate.

“Seed rates after the end of October are difficult to quantify specifically as they will be more determined by the seasonal weather and seedbed preparation at the time of drilling.”

“Generally, seed rates are increased the further drilling moves towards the winter months to compensate for the impact on tillering, as a result of cooler temperatures and shorter days.”

“In good conditions in early November, the target should be a seed rate of 375-400 seeds/m2, increasing to 400-475 seeds/m2 at later drill dates, or in a black-grass or poor seedbed situation.”

“Effective seed treatments for root disease and insect control, especially if wheat Bulb fly is a concern, alongside good slug control should be considered as valuable tools for good establishment, especially in known high-risk situations.”

He notes that later drilled varieties often have the advantage of requiring lower inputs and may not require an earlier autumn herbicide.

“Growers should also choose varieties with a good disease resistance profile, certainly against mildew, as this can be problematic on some soil types in the late drilled situation.”

Ron Granger recognises that spring wheat varieties do have a place in the rotation for late drilling, especially in a black-grass situation, but points out that some winter wheat varieties can be grown through to the end of January without significant yield penalties.

After January some spring wheat varieties come into their own regarding yield performance, and should be a serious consideration if black-grass is the major threat on farm, he says.

With second wheats, the added pressure from high-levels of take-all inoculum and eyespot are important to consider when choosing a variety for this very testing situation, he points out. “Not all wheat varieties perform in this very testing situation so its important growers choose the correct varieties”

Again LG Skyscraper has performed well in this situation, highlighted by the AHDB Recommended List and more significantly by good on farm performance.

In a second wheat situation, with a known eyespot history, varieties that carry the Rendezvous PcH1 gene; will secure a greater resistance for ensuring final yield potential.

The combination of a disrupted drilling season, resulting in many later established crops and a cool month for much of August, means maize crops are maturing at different rates and Mr Richmond stresses the need to assess crops closely.

“Just because crops look good in the field does not mean they are ready to harvest,” he comments. “Walking crops in the last few weeks we have seen delayed cob development and also crops with a very high proportion of vegetative material. The only way to reliably assess fitness for harvest is to walk crops and assess both dry matter and cob development.”

He says maize should be harvested when the crop combines optimal starch content of 30-35% with only limited leaf die back, so maintaining high digestibility in the vegetative part of the plant. At the same time, the crop must have sufficient moisture to allow effective compaction in the clamp. Harvesting a crop too soon will result in sub-optimal starch content, as sugars will not have been converted into starch.

Mr Richmond advises walking well into the crop and looking at plants in several locations. To assess the maturity of the vegetative material he advises looking at the flow of juice from the stem, targeting to harvest when very little or no juice emerges as the stem is twisted, and when the leaves level with the cob are just beginning to turn brown. To assess the grains for harvest readiness, cobs should be broken in half and the position of the milk line assessed.

“To help farmers accurately determine if the crop if ready to harvest, the LG Maize Manager App, which is free to download, includes a Harvest Manager section. This provides an easy to use, step-by-step guide to crop assessment and predicts how far the crop is off harvest.

“Relying on careful assessment will ensure farmers enter the winter with the best quality maize silage to act as the foundation for winter rations,” Mr Richmond comments.

The Maize Manager App is available on the Apple or Google Play stores, or at www.maizemanager.com

Watch below to see how the app can help you!

Difficulties in harvesting this year have meant many growers have been unable to clear land as early as they would have liked, and many may be concerned that they have missed out on drilling oilseed rape as a break crop.

Liam Wilkinson, arable development officer

However, Mr Wilkinson recommends growers refer to seedbed conditions rather than calendar dates, before making a final decision, noting that most breeder trials are drilled in September.

He says: “There are still good opportunities for late drilled crops – which often outperform some of the earlier drilled crops – in fact many later drilled crops have been winners in the YEN awards!

“Last year we saw crops of LG Antigua drilled mid September up in the Lincolnshire Wolds achieve yields of over 6t/ha so there is definitely high yield potential for crops drilled into September in the right conditions.”

“Choosing the correct variety for this drilling window is key to success, however.”

“If you are drilling in September, the focus should be on speed of autumn growth and vigour, so hybrids are a first choice because they are quick to get going and they accumulate biomass very quickly,” he says.

“Tried and tested varieties such as Ambassador and Aurelia have performed consistently in this slot both on farm and in trial for a number of years now, and the addition of LG Aviron and LG Antigua to our portfolio only strengthens our position in the later drilled slot.”

“Vigour is important for helping to get the crop established and putting roots down but the speed of development is key for reaching over wintering biomass as quickly as possible, you are looking for a variety to have canopy to be able to withstand potential pest problems as well as harsh winter conditions.”

With vigorous varieties, seed rates should target 25-30 plants/sq.m, which is normally around 50 seeds/m², and Liam recommends that growers assess seedbed conditions and adjust seed rates accordingly to account for field losses, particularly if conditions deteriorate.

He goes on to say that varietal disease resistance to disease also plays a key role for later drilled crops, and growers should look for resistance to phoma, explaining that with the smaller, younger crops, phoma lesions cover a larger percentage of the leaf, so disease can have a more devastating effect.

“All of our hybrids that we bring to market fall into our fully-loaded category. We are looking to mitigate as much risk as possible for growers, and by combining TuYV and pod shatter resistance along with gene specific resistance to phoma we have managed to produce high yielding varieties which perform consistently over seasons”

“Their high yield potential can be seen again in this year’s AHDB results.”